removing dark area outside frame in photshop 7

[Steve747]

Hello. I made a nice frame in photoshop with the help of a nice member. The photo is of myself and my partner and I have our heads inside the frame, the thing is there is a lot of dark area outside the frame, There is also some nice flowers on the frame which go outside slightly of the frame which I want to keep. How do I just keep the frame and us inside without the dark area outside of it. Thanks

[Kevin Stohlmeyer]

Can you crop the photo to remove the dark area outside?

[c.pfaffenbichler]

Could you please post screenshots with the pertinent Panels (Toolbar, Layers, Options Bar, …) visible? 

[Steve747]

Hello. Seems I have to go back to the beginning. I'm sending a screenshot of the frame I want to use. As You can see I started to move it off the background. I want to move it onto a nice photo of myself and wife which I can do. After I do that there is a lot of dark area outside the frame. How do I remove this dark area, I want to keep the petals outside the bottom of the frame as well and be left with only the picture frame with us inside. Thanks

[c.pfaffenbichler]

What are you talking about? What dark area? 

Is that Photoshop 7? 

[Steve747]

yes, photoshop 7. The photo was taken inside a large room which includes everything behind us. I can move the frame so it has our faces nicely inside, however it includes all the dark background of the room which is outside the frame. I want to remove all this background outside the frame but don't know how

[c.pfaffenbichler]

Please post meaningful screenshots! 

You can make a rectangular Selection with the Rectangular Marquee Tool and apply the Selection as a Layer Mask to the Layer below the frame-Layer. 

[Steve747]

Hello. here is a screenshot of the frame I was mentioning. I want to get rid of all the black area outside the frame so I'm just left with a nice frame

[c.pfaffenbichler]

Please post meaningful screenshots! 

That means that the pertinent Panels should be visible. 

If the image is on a Layer of its own then create a rectangular Selection and apply a Layer Mask to it. (Layer > Layer Mask > Reveal Selection)

[KShinabery212]

I do not see see what you mean by dark area.  I see the darker edge of the frame.  But that is how the light hits the frame.  I do not think you really need to mess with that.  As it will look awkward if you remove it.

[KShinabery212]

If we could see the image then we could offer up better ideas.  It is hard to say what to do without seeing the image.  Can you share it?

[Steve747]

I have already sent the image. Please see the previous screenshots. You can clearly see the darker areas outside the picture frame, which I want to remove

[c.pfaffenbichler]

First off: That is obviously not the screenshot I asked for all those posts ago. 

Secondly: Have you tried using a Layer Mask yet? 

[Steve747]

Hello. I think you asked for the original frame I was working with. I think that is long gone and I'm trying to work with the one in the previous screenshots. I can't remove the dark areas outside the frame. To clarify, I get a program error message in photoshop when I try to save them so I make a screenshot in paint then save it then I can bring it back to photoshop but there seems to be not much I can do with it, However I can load the frame by itself to photoshop with the transparent background and I can move it using the move tool onto the photo, which is in the previous screenshots, but I can't remove the background outside the frame, not sure if masking tool works, unless I'm doing something wrong

[c.pfaffenbichler]

Please post the requested screenshots instead of writing on and on. 

If the problem is that the photograph is a background layer, duplicate it and hide the original background layer, then you can apply a Layer Mask to the copy. 

[c.pfaffenbichler]

[Steve747]

This seems to be getting too complicated. I have already put screenshots of the photo frame. I'm new to photoshop and don't know much about layers. As I've previously mentioned I want to remove the dark areas outside the picture frame and  have no idea how to remove it

[Steve747]

in the case of the nice photo of the bird in the trees. I would want to remove the blue sky and leaves outside the frame

[c.pfaffenbichler]

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@Steve747 wrote:

This seems to be getting too complicated. I have already put screenshots of the photo frame. I'm new to photoshop and don't know much about layers. As I've previously mentioned I want to remove the dark areas outside the picture frame and  have no idea how to remove it

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In the second answer post on this thread I asked »Could you please post screenshots with the pertinent Panels (Toolbar, Layers, Options Bar, …) visible?«

What is complicated about that? 

And it seems clear to me that I was not referring to the frame but to the image where there were dark parts extending beyond the frame.  

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in the case of the nice photo of the bird in the trees. I would want to remove the blue sky and leaves outside the frame

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The screenshots I posted show the steps necessary to hide part of a Layer with a Layer Mask.

Please check them out one after the other and pay attention to the goings-on in the Layers Panel. 

[Steve747]

when I clicked on layer mask as shown in above shot, the reveal selection is greyed out so I can't click on it

[c.pfaffenbichler]

Did you create a Selection with the Rectangular Marquee Tool first (as mentioned previously)? 

Anyway, as you don’t seem ready to provide helpful information in the form of the requested screenshots I will stop following this thread. 

Good luck! 

[Steve747]

Thanks for you help anyway. It's becoming too complicated